It's far too early to make any serious determination about a softball season barely underway, but the early returns show that the preseason presumption that Rosemount was the big-school behemoth was spot on.
The Irish have won their first seven games, scoring at least 10 runs in each. Senior first baseman Paige Zender started slugging from the get-go, hitting home runs in the first two games, and already has a metro-leading five homers. Of Rosemount's eight players with double figures in at-bats, seven are hitting .500 or better. They've been so dominant that pitcher Jessa Snippes, who started all seven games, has not yet had to throw a full seven innings.
Softball Metro Top 10
1. Rosemount (7-0): Can anyone stop the Rosemount machine? The Irish are averaging 12.4 runs per game.
2. Stillwater (6-0): The Ponies already have notable victories over Suburban East rivals White Bear Lake, Cretin-Derham Hall and Forest Lake.
3. Eden Prairie (4-1): Eagles will be tested with five games in six days this week: three vs. Lake Conference foes and the finale hosting top 2A team Le Sueur-Henderson.
4. Park of Cottage Grove (5-1): Wolfpack get a rematch with Forest Lake, whom they beat 2-1 Wednesday.
5. Maple Grove (4-1): Star pitcher Madison Wilhm hasn't pitched in a week and will be ready for rival Centennial on Tuesday.
6. Forest Lake (3-2): Rangers' back-to-back one-run losses to Stillwater and Park of Cottage Grove were simply a hiccup.
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